23 - 26 June, 2025 |
Hilton Syon Park, London, United Kingdom
Directed Energy Focus Day | 23 June 2025
8:00 - 9:00
REGISTRATION AND REFRESHMENTS
9:00 - 9:10
CHAIRMAN'S OPENING REMARKS
Colonel (Ret.) Paul Daniels -
Senior Defense Consultant and President, P. Daniels Consulting,
FSAD 2025 Co-Chairman
Colonel (Ret.) Paul Daniels
Senior Defense Consultant and President, P. Daniels ConsultingFSAD 2025 Co-Chairman
TRANSITION FROM PROTOTYPE TO PRODUCT: NEXT STEPS FOR PUSHING DE WEAPONS INTO THE FIELD
9:10 - 9:45
BRINGING DIRECTED ENERGY INTO FOCUS: ROLE OF DEW IN MITIGATING THE INCREASING AIR AND MISSILE THREAT
Mr. James Black -
Assistant Director, Defence and Security and European Lead, Space,
RAND Europe
• Balancing the benefits, drawbacks, and countermeasures of DEWs in modern warfare
• Potential challenges of DEW for industry, and developments needed to push investment forward
• Impact of the successful DragonFire trials in the UK to push DEWs into the field
Mr. James Black
Assistant Director, Defence and Security and European Lead, SpaceRAND Europe
9:45 - 10:30
DEVELOPMENTS IN TESTING & EVALUATION FOR DEW INSIGHTS FROM TEAM HERSA
Liam Rickard -
Lead Test & Experimentation Engineer - Directed Energy Weapons,
DE&S - UK MoD
Warrant Officer Matthew Anderson - QMSI ICC, Army Trials Unit
• Insights into the testing & evaluation stages of the UK’s High Energy Laser System
· Importance of testing to meet evolving C-UAS requirements
· Next stages of trials and developments for Team Hersa
10:30 - 11:00
STATUS OF THE DEVELOPMENT, IMPLEMENTATION, AND INTEGRATION OF DIRECTED ENERGY APPLICATIONS
Dr Neset Akӧzbek -
Senior Scientist for Directed Energy,
U.S. Army Space and Missile Defense Command
· Update on prototyping and testing of US Army DEW for operational capability
· Modernising lethality to counter evolving UAS threats
· New technologies and innovation needed to increase DEW performance
Dr Neset Akӧzbek
Senior Scientist for Directed EnergyU.S. Army Space and Missile Defense Command
11:00 - 11:30
MORNING COFFEE AND NETWORKING BREAK
11:30 - 12:00
GERMANY’S GROUND-BASED MISSILE DEFENCE PRIORITIES: EUROPEAN SKY SHIELD INITIATIVE (ESSI)
Brigadier General Arnt Kuebart -
Commander, Ground-Based Forces,
Bundeswehr
· The German Air Force air and missile defence mission
· Current ballistic missile defence capabilities and future requirements for Germany
· Improving the integration and interoperability of air defence in Europe (e.g. ESSI)
ACCELERATING THE INTEGRATION OF DIRECTED ENERGY INTO THE WIDER SYSTEM
12:00 - 12:30
ENHANCING THE INTEGRATION OF DE WEAPONS ACROSS DOMAINS
Dr. Donald Shiffler -
Chief Scientist for Directed Energy, Directed Energy Directorate,
Air Force Research Laboratory
· Understand what performance DE systems provide based on advances in science and technology
· Explore how widely and at what levels Directed Energy capabilities are proliferated across nation states and other entities
· Hear insights on the military utility of DE enabled capabilities in the execution of the kill chain, across domains and across the phases of conflict
Dr. Donald Shiffler
Chief Scientist for Directed Energy, Directed Energy DirectorateAir Force Research Laboratory
12:30 - 14:00
LUNCH AND NETWORKING BREAK
COUNTERING EMERGING THREATS WITH DIRECTED ENERGY
14:00 - 14:50
PANEL DISCUSSION: ENHANCING DE CAPABILITIES TO COUNTER EVOLVING THREATS, INCLUDING UAS, SMALL UAS AND DRONE SWARMS
Colonel (Ret.) Paul Daniels -
Senior Defense Consultant and President, P. Daniels Consulting,
FSAD 2025 Co-Chairman
Martin Suitters - Head of Innovation & Capability, Complex Weapons, UK Defence Solutions Centre
Dr Neset Akӧzbek - Senior Scientist for Directed Energy, U.S. Army Space and Missile Defense Command
• How do militaries and industry view the proposed applications of High Energy Laser in modern warfare?
• How does the counter-UAS mission impact developments in DEW?
• How can DE weapons be operated in a more volatile, urban environment?
• What technological advancements are needed to increase capabilities in the future operating environment?
• How can industry support the integration of Directed Energy Weapons into the wider air defence system?
Colonel (Ret.) Paul Daniels
Senior Defense Consultant and President, P. Daniels ConsultingFSAD 2025 Co-Chairman
Martin Suitters
Head of Innovation & Capability, Complex WeaponsUK Defence Solutions Centre
Dr Neset Akӧzbek
Senior Scientist for Directed EnergyU.S. Army Space and Missile Defense Command
14:50 - 15:20
UK DEVELOPMENTS IN DIRECTED ENERGY LASER WEAPONS TO ENHANCE CAPABILITIES
Martin Suitters -
Head of Innovation & Capability, Complex Weapons,
UK Defence Solutions Centre
· UK DEW capabilities for Counter-UAS, focusing on tracking, targeting, and mitigating threats from enemy drones
· Challenges of developing DEW from a testing, SWaP and robustness point of view
· Cost considerations for directed energy development and integration, including perspectives on DragonFire, Wolfhoud and Ealing
Martin Suitters
Head of Innovation & Capability, Complex WeaponsUK Defence Solutions Centre
15:20 - 16:00
AFTERNOON TEA AND NETWORKING BREAK
DEVELOPING DE TECHNOLOGIES TO SUPPORT MISSION SUCCESS
16:00 - 16:30
HIGH ENERGY LASER WEAPONS TO ENHANCE C-UAS CAPABILITIES
Colonel Adam Miller -
Project Manager and Deputy Director for Directed Energy,
US Army RCCTO
• Exploring HEL capabilities for C-UAS operations
• Key insights into directed energy deployment for M-SHORAD operations
• Transition from Army RCCTO to PEO Missiles & Space
16:20 - 16:50
EVALUATING THE WIDER IMPACT OF HIGH-ENERGY LASER TECHNOLOGY
Rüdiger Schmitt -
Senior Scientist,
French-German Research Institute of Saint Louis (ISL)
· Impact of high-energy laser deployment on existing defence infrastructure
· Restrictions of using HEL in the battlefield, and across different environments
· Considerations of the optronic countermeasures for high-energy lasers
16:50 - 17:00
CHAIRMAN'S CLOSING REMARKS & FOCUS DAY SUMMARY
Colonel (Ret.) Paul Daniels -
Senior Defense Consultant and President, P. Daniels Consulting,
FSAD 2025 Co-Chairman
Colonel (Ret.) Paul Daniels
Senior Defense Consultant and President, P. Daniels ConsultingFSAD 2025 Co-Chairman
